thistles

How do I get rid of thistles? Other than pulling, they keep coming back. I do pull them before they seed, if I see them. Anything I can spray on them to get rid of them for good? I have tried various weed killers as well as homemade ones. This was a bean field 6 years ago, don't know if that makes a difference or not. Thanks

What kind of thistle are you needing control of? There are quite a large number of thistle varieties. Musk, bull, Canadian, wavey leaf, etc.

I am working for a county weed department and am spraying the heck out of the noxious weed musk thistle. I don't feel comfortable givng the spray mix nor what we are using as it may vary widely from area to area. We also use a chemical available only to those licensed.

You DO want to keep the thistle from going to seed. The seed goes airborne and can fly a long way.

Musk thistle can also be readily dug if you go down about 4 inches. Usually a shovel will almost pop the tap root out rather than just cut it. Bury seed heads of near maturity to a 6 inch depth or burn them.

Many of the thistles expand their territory slowly and should not be difficult to control. Musk thistle on the other hand spreads quite easily from the seed, hence the reason for it to have been added to our noxious weed list.

I take a ten gallon bucket and set it on top of the weed cut it so the bucket sets right on top of it. I put rocks and a little water to hold it down tight works purty good for me. Let it set there about a week and its gone.

Here's a couple ideas...but keep in mind,
if you just lop it off, get ALL the leaves
which will help reduce most of the photo
synthesis required to keep the plant living.
You can use common table salt on select
plants...as well as distilled vinegar. Both
are pretty non-toxic ways to spot weed.